


Like the arctic sun after the winter

by Dreamer_of_Improbable_Dreams



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Baby fic?, Caring Dean, Protective Dean, Sam is Confused, Sam's baby, There's a baby
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-03
Updated: 2015-01-03
Packaged: 2018-03-05 02:52:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3102824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dreamer_of_Improbable_Dreams/pseuds/Dreamer_of_Improbable_Dreams
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompted by this:<br/>Dean finding a young girl on a hunt when he takes her back Sam freezes, the girl is the spitting image of a woman he once dated and she is the right age to match when he was dating her mum</p><p>So I messed with it a little, it vaguely resembles the original prompt.<br/>Dean gets a call from a woman, when he shows up he can't prevent her from being killed by the demon hunting her baby. But he may have ended up with the most precious thing in his keeping. His brother's daughter. And Dean can't help but love her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like the arctic sun after the winter

**Author's Note:**

> Written for  
> http://archiveofourown.org/users/ScottishKelpie/pseuds/ScottishKelpie  
> Dean finding a young girl on a hunt when he takes her back Sam freezes, the girl is the spitting image of a woman he once dated and she is the right age to match when he was dating her mum
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Dean gets the call when he's out on a pie run.  
The panicked voice on the other end of the line asking him to hurry come quick.  
Dean hits the road.  
He feels vaguely guilty for leaving Sam behind at the motel, but Sam was sleeping and Dean's in a hurry.  
He'll be back in town in a couple of hours anyway, Sam won't even notice he's gone.

When Dean finally burns into town and pulls up in front the small house he immediately picks out the woman waiting for him. He can tell by the twitchy way she looks over her shoulder, the pale cast of her skin, the way the purple under her frightened eyes stands out.  
When she sees him her face crumples with relief.  
"Dean!"  
"Sarah"  
As he slips into the house and sits at the table opposite her Dean reflects that it's slightly awkward seeing her again. Last time he saw her was after a case had just wrapped up and Dean had accidentally walked in on her and Sam. He'd never wished for an acid eyeball rinse more in his life.  
That had been a couple of years ago, when Sam hadn't had his soul.

"What can I help you with? You sounded pretty stressed on the phone. And about that, why'd you call me and not Sam?"  
Dean was genuinely curious.

"I may have slept with your brother but I was under no misconceptions about what kind of a cold son of a bitch he was. I at least knew you would come if I asked for help"

Sarah's face was impassive when she said it and Dean felt the instinct to defend Sam on the tip of his tongue. It wasn't Sam's fault Cas had left his soul in the cage. This woman didn't know anything about his brother, Sam was the kindest most compassionate person Dean knew.  
Dean pushed the words away and said instead "so what's so important you had to call so late? I was three towns over"

Sarah closed her eyes and took a deep breath.  
"There's something coming after my daughter. I don't know what it is but it keeps trying to get at her. It hurt me when I got in the way"

Funny, Dean doesn't remember Sarah having a daughter, but he could have missed something like that occupied with the hunt.

Dean listens intently as Sarah pours out her story. It quickly becomes clear to Dean that for some reason this kid has a demon after it. And hell if he's gonna let some black eyed bitch screw up another family like his. He can figure out why the demon was after it later.

Suddenly a loud crash of glass shatters the silence.  
Sarah is rushing into the sitting room with Dean hot on her heels, demon knife in hand.  
The woman is leaning over the crib, reaching for the sleeping baby. With a wild cry Sarah tackles the demon away from her baby.  
There's a tussle, a cry of anguish, and then Dean is there with the knife. A flash of orange and yellow sparks, a sizzle, and the demon slumps to the ground next to Sarah.  
The baby is whimpering in the background, but Dean's attention is focused on Sarah.  
The red blood stubbornly pooling out from under where his palms are pressed to her side.  
"Why'd you do it? Why?"  
Dean can't help but ask. The stubborn woman had run right at the demon and got herself stabbed. Why'd she have to do that? Dean was right there, and he couldn't save her.  
He could feel that tearing ache gripping at his heart. Another senseless death he hadn't been good enough to prevent.

There where tears in Sarah's eyes as she struggled to answer, her voice barely a whisper that Dean had to lean forwards to hear.  
"I had to save my baby"  
The tears where slipping as freely from her eyes as the blood through Dean's fingers.  
He'd seen enough people die to know she didn't have long. The frustrated tears burned at the back of his eyes. Tears he refused to let come forward.  
He almost jumped when he felt Sarah's hand thread into the hair on the back of his neck and weakly pull his face down until his ear was right against her lips, her wispy breaths underlining the coming end.

"I need you to look after my baby. Raise her good"

Was this lady delusional? Just handing her baby over to a stranger? Was dying causing hallucinations?!  
Dean opened his mouth to protest but was interrupted.

"Letters in the second drawer... You'll understand when... You see... Sam's...."

Dean knew she was gone. Recognized that soft sigh so clearly for what it was.  
But he didn't understand! And the baby was still crying. Poor thing. Her mother had just died right there on the floor next to her crib.  
His heart heavy in his chest and mind numb with confusion Dean levered himself up from the floor and turned to face the crib and its crying occupant.

And when he locked eyes with Sarah's daughter his mind flew out the door.

It's Sammy.  
Dean was again four years old. His tiny arms reaching out to clutch his baby brother to his chest. Small hands cradling an even smaller body.

But this wasn't Sammy, and Dean stood clutching the baby to his chest with bloody hands.  
He understood now, Sarah's cryptic last words.  
Why she put the life of her baby in the blood soaked hands of a stranger.  
Because he wasn't a stranger.

Dean stared down at the baby lying quietly in his arms, staring up at him with his brothers hazel eyes, smiling back at the tears on Dean's cheeks with Sam's dimples.

With a shaky hand Dean wiped the tears away. He couldn't have said if they where tears of sorrow or joy, fear or relief. He probably left blood smeared across his face.  
It made sense now, the baby was a Winchester. No wonder the demon wanted her so bad.  
And now she was never going to have that normal Apple pie life. Would never have a mother to kiss her goodnight, to make warm milk when she couldn't sleep, to rock her and tell her there where no monsters in the closet. Dean had screwed up, and now this baby would never have that.  
He promised himself right there, promised the baby smiling at him with Sam's mouth that he would make up for it. She would grow up happy, Dean would do everything he could to make sure of that. Even if it was a promise he knew he couldn't make.  
As though on auto pilot Dean's feet carried him to the desk and he opened the second drawer, removing the last will and testament of Sarah Tam.  
There was a letter, addressed to Dean.  
With the trembling fingers of one hand Dean fumbled the letter open, the other clutching the baby, his niece, he realized with a start. 

~  
Concerning my daughter, Aislin Winchester.  
If in the event if my death before her 18th birthday Aislin will go to her uncle, Dean Winchester.

Dean, if you are reading this, it means I have died and Aislin is with you. I want you to look after her. She has no other family but you and her father and I don't believe Sam is capable of raising a child. I knew when I found out about Aislin that Sam was her father. I also know that there's something missing in Sam's heart. But I know you will take good care of her, I could see it in your eyes. Therefore, in my will I have made you Aislin's guardian. Look after her. And I hope maybe Sam can find whatever's missing in his heart to love her too.  
~

There was another letter addressed to Aislin.  
That was the baby's name, Aislin. It was strangely fitting, with her wide serious eyes.

And she was Sam's, which made her Dean's too.  
In the space of a few moments all the world was unimportant. All that mattered was the bundle he held in his arms, stained with her mothers blood still on his hands, and staring at him with the eyes he cared about most in the world.

 

Xxx

 

It was late and Sam was just starting to worry about his brother when the sound of the Impala's purr broke the quiet.  
With a relieved sigh Sam set down the book he was reading and stood up as the door opened.  
Sam's relief flew out the window when Dean finally stepped into the light, covered in blood with his coat bundled around something and cradled gently to his chest.

"Dean! What happened?!" 

Sam's voice was loud in the silence.

"Shhhh!"

Dean hissed at him, checking the bundled up coat in his arms.  
Dread started to creep into Sam.

"Dean. What do you have in your coat?"

Dean looked uncertain.

"Dean, please tell me you don't have what I think you have in your coat! Please tell me you didn't just walk in here with what I think that is"

"Well... No? Not exactly?"

There was an incriminating coo from Aislin and a traitorous little hand popped out of Dean's coat to fist itself in his flannel button down.

"Dean! You finally did it! Knocked up some girl and she finally caught up and dumped the baby on you!"

"No I didn't "

"Yes you did! Don't lie to me with the evidence right in your arms!"

"Aislin isn't mine Sam!"

"Then who's! And why are you carrying around someone else's baby?"

"Because" said Dean, and stepped up close to Sam so he could look into his own eyes blinking back at him from Aislin's face.

There was a long silence broken only by Aislin's cooing and smiling at Dean and Sam.

"Wait... WHAT?! Dean! Explain!"

"I got a call from Sarah Tam. There was a demon after Aislin. But the demon got Sarah and you and I are Aislin's only family, so I took her with me."

Sam looked like his giant brain had finally hit something it couldn't process.  
"But how? When?"

"The year you lost your soul Sam. You hooked up with Sarah and Aislin happened. She's your daughter Sammy"

Sam looked at his brother's face, but all Dean's attention was on Aislin, watching as her tiny hand wrapped around one of his fingers.  
Dean's expression was something Sam hadn't seen for years, he was smiling that completely open smile that went right to his eyes. Everything about Dean was soft and relaxed and focused on Aislin, as though the baby was the most precious thing in the world.

Something in Sam wanted to reach out and hold the baby, his baby, but his rational mind kept working.

"Dean, how are we gonna look after a baby? I don't know anything about raising kids! And the life we live..."

Dean's voice could have almost been petulant, "but we have the bunker now Sam! We can't leave her somewhere with no one to look after her, a demon already killed her mom coming after her! Anyway, I raised you didn't I? I'll help look after her."

Sam is about to try another argument when he looks at Dean.  
He sees his brother, still covered in red blood, holding tight to the baby in his arms, protective.  
Holding on to the only family he has besides Sam.  
His body curled towards the bundle in his arms.  
His face that hard mask he only wears when he's afraid and slightly desperate.  
But when he glances up his eyes tell Sam 'Dean is afraid you'll make him send Aislin away. Dean already loves Aislin because she's a tiny piece of you.'

"Okay"

Sam says.

"Okay, we'll keep her"

And when Dean smiles it's worth it, worth the trouble and the risk.  
It's like seeing the sun rise over the arctic for the first time after months in the dark.  
It sets the world alight.

**Author's Note:**

> I might try writing a very different story from this prompt some time  
> I don't know  
> I haven't decided


End file.
